


Avengers: Enemies in High Places

by d0d0bird



Series: Marvel: Tales to Tantalize! [28]
Category: Avengers (Comics), Marvel
Genre: Bullying, Burning, Burns, Enemies, Fire, Gen, Hair-pulling, Humiliation, Humor, Obedience, Olivia Octavius-centric, Partial Nudity, Situational Humiliation, Steve Rogers Is a Good Bro, Submission, Suspension, Verbal Abuse, wedgie, wedgies
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-29
Updated: 2020-03-29
Packaged: 2021-02-28 20:29:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,655
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23383075
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/d0d0bird/pseuds/d0d0bird
Summary: Dr. Olivia Octavius is an incredible asset to S.H.I.E.L.D. As a result, her prison escort is none other than the Avengers themselves! Olivia gleefully takes advantage of her leverage as a valuable prisoner until the mission goes sideways.Now Olivia is at Justine Hammer’s mercy, with the Avengers as her only hope! The rescue does not go quite as intended. This poor scientist’s dignity is about to take a dive…
Series: Marvel: Tales to Tantalize! [28]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1507763
Comments: 1
Kudos: 2





	Avengers: Enemies in High Places

Steve Rogers walked down the halls of the Triskelion, on his way to the conference room for the mission briefing. The Avengers had been active for some time now and Steve had gotten a good idea of their usual mission routines. Maria Hill would determine what members were best suited for each mission and brief them on it before sending them off with their orders. 

The Avengers had been a huge success. Following their battle with the Phalanx,* they were recognized as heroes by just about every citizen and government official. Maria Hill was credited with the formation of the team and had been made Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. as a result, while maintaining direct control over the Avengers.

*In [Avengers: Part of the Team](https://archiveofourown.org/works/22190941)

The promotion unnerved Steve a bit. After what Hill had done to Peter Parker, Steve had his doubts about her capabilities as a leader. Hill had publicly humiliated Peter in front of the rest of the team and intentionally triggered an episode to make him appear unfit for the team.

Steve had voiced his objection to Hill’s actions to very little effect. He didn’t like working for her, but he recognized that the Avengers initiative was doing more good than harm. So long as that was the case, he would continue to fight for them.

Steve walked into the conference room, where Angelica Jones and Agent Natasha Romanoff were already sitting waiting for him. Director Hill herself was at the head of the room, standing with her arms crossed.

“Just in time,” she said impatiently, “Take a seat, Captain Rogers.”

Steve obliged. He surmised that the three Avengers present would be the team for this coming mission. It would be his first time working directly with these two. He hadn’t gotten much of a chance to know Angelica, but from what he had seen she was an excellent combatant with a good heart.

Steve had reservations about Agent Romanoff. She had been the one to discover Peter’s trauma to use against him, even if Hill had given the order. Agent Romanoff had shown a willingness to be cruel and merciless when ordered to do so. It seemed like she would follow orders no matter what. That was not a character trait Steve cared for.

“Alright,” said Hill, picking up a remote, “Let’s begin.”

She clicked the remote and the TV at the front of the conference room flickered on, showing the mugshot of a tired looking mussy-haired woman in glasses.

“This is Dr. Olivia Octavius,” explained Hill, “also known as Doctor Octopus or Doc Ock to some. She is currently a prisoner of S.H.I.E.L.D. being held at the Dune.”

She clicked the remote again. The image changed to photos of the Dune and several of its facilities. It was a standard maximum security S.H.I.E.L.D. prison in an undisclosed location in the midwest. Steve was relatively familiar with it.

“Dr. Octavius was instrumental in preventing the Phalanx invasion,” explained Hill, “Though she is a criminal, her brilliance can’t be denied. She is an asset to S.H.I.E.L.D..”

Hill clicked the remote again, changing the screen to photos of an airplane hangar.

“This is a S.H.I.E.L.D. hangar not far from the Dune,” she explained, “You are to escort her there and board _S-Liner 245_ , a small passenger plane. A pilot will already be onboard. You will then accompany her on the plane back here to D.C.”

She clicked the remote again, clicking the screen to several photos of armored S.H.I.E.L.D. trucks.

“You will all then be loaded onto one of these trucks,” explained Hill, “You will be transported from there to the Triskelion. Upon arrival, Dr. Octavius will be transferred to her new living quarters.”

“The Triskelion doesn’t have any prison cells,” commented Angelica.

“It does not,” said Hill plainly.

“Then where will Octavius’s living quarters be?” asked Angelica.

“I’m afraid that’s classified,” said Hill.

Steve knew what that meant. In exchange for her help, Olivia was almost certainly getting an improved living situation.

“Why is this an Avenger-tier mission?” asked Agent Romanoff, “What sort of threats are you expecting?”

“Dr. Octavius has had many dealings with powerful and determined individuals,” said Hill, “She has sold her services to numerous villains and crime lords. Many of them would like to collect on those services. Others want her dead or captured for their own purposes.”

“Sounds like this nerd is pretty popular,” scoffed Agent Romanoff.

“That’s one way to put it,” said Hill, “Are there any other questions?”

No one responded.

“Good,” she nodded, “Your plane departs from the Silph Air Base at 6:00 AM tomorrow. Don’t be late.”

Everyone got up and left the room as Hill gathered her things and powered down the laptop feeding into the television. The Avengers made their way to the elevator and began the long ride down to their quarters. The ride was silent at first, with none of them speaking as Agent Romanoff got off on a different floor to take care of her own business. When Angelica and Steve were alone in the elevator, she spoke.

“Is this sitting right with you?” she asked.

“The mission?”

“Yes.”

“Why do you ask?”

“S.H.I.E.L.D. has their own scientists,” said Angelica, “hundreds of them! Most of them are at the top of their field. What project could be so complicated that a known criminal and terrorist is necessary to complete it?”

“Hm,” considered Steve.

“Call me paranoid,” sighed Angelica, “but whenever a government starts aggressively researching and developing weapons I get nervous.” 

“We don’t know that they’re using Dr. Octavius to build weapons,” said Steve.

“I have a hard time imagining Hill going through all this trouble for a clean energy initiative,” said Angelica.

Steve nodded. She had a point. Hill was an intense woman who lived her life as a spy, always assuming someone was out to get her. She barely trusted her fellow S.H.I.E.L.D. agents and she definitely didn’t trust anyone outside the organization. Steve got the impression she was always waiting for an attack to hit. Angelica was probably right. She was probably developing weapons.

“Thank you for voicing your concern,” said Steve, “I appreciate it.”

“No problem,” said Angelica carefully, trying to tell how genuine Steve was being.

“You are completely justified in distrusting S.H.I.E.L.D.,” added Steve after a moment.

“Thank you,” sighed Angelica with relief, “It’s nice to hear that.”

Angelica was a mutant, after all. There was a long history of governments committing atrocities to her people in secret. Countries that didn’t openly discriminate against mutants often treated them as weapons or threats. The United States had a dark history of treatment of mutants too. Steve forgot that sometimes. It was good to have people like Angelica to remind him.

***

Captain America, Black Widow, and Firestar stood waiting. They were inside the Dune now, awaiting Olivia’s transfer into their custody. They were wearing their uniforms now: Captain America in his stars and stripes, Black Widow in her black special ops suit, and Firestar in her red and yellow heat-resistant S.H.I.E.L.D. uniform.

The doors in front of them opened as two armed guards led Olivia out. She wore an ankle monitor, but other than that one would never have guessed she was a prisoner. In fact, the slacks, loafers, argyle socks, glasses, and button down shirt she wore all looked fairly high end.

“Dr. Octavius,” nodded Captain America.

“Captain America,” she smiled back smugly, “It’s a pleasure.”

“The pleasure’s all yours,” said Firestar, “I’m sure.”

“Careful what you say,” cautioned Olivia, “I may decide that helping you out isn’t worth it to me after all. Something tells me our friend Maria wouldn’t be too pleased with that.”

Firestar clenched her jaw in frustration. Olivia was right. Hill would have their heads if Olivia backed out of this deal. They had to keep her satisfied. Olivia had the vast majority of the leverage here and she knew it.

“Now,” said Olivia, “I believe we have a flight to catch?”

The team escorted her out of the building and into the back of a truck, where they sat with her while they were driven to the hangar. The ride was only a few minutes long, but Olivia didn’t waste any time using it to amuse herself.

“So as far as the in-flight meals go,” she said, “What’s on the menu?”

“Nothing,” said Black Widow plainly.

“Oh no,” frowned Olivia, “That won’t do. We’ll have to change that. I’m thinking… Some sort of pasta dish maybe? I recently tried this-”

“That’s enough,” said Captain America sternly.

Olivia looked back at Captain America in surprise, but it soon turned into a confident smile as she folded her arms and leaned back.

“Well I’m not boarding that plane until I know I’m being fed,” she said, “and that the food is to my satisfaction.”

“Nice try,” scoffed Firestar, “but we’re not stopping just so you can-”

“Very well,” shrugged Olivia, “In that case, please return me to the Dune. I have no intention of helping S.H.I.E.L.D. any further.”

The Avengers looked to one another. None of them were confident enough to call her bluff. After a few seconds, Captain America rapped his knuckles against the partition separating them from the driver.

“Hey,” he said, “Slight change of plans. Can you bring us to the nearest grocery store first?”

“There’s a good one with everything we need a few miles south of here,” suggested Olivia, “Which one of you is the best cook?”

***

The _S-Liner 245_ was a small but luxurious passenger plane. There were maybe a dozen seats in total, all spread throughout the cabin at different tables by the windows. The cabin itself was spacious, making it easy to move about.

Olivia had finished her requested meal, with the empty plate sitting on the table in front of her. She was now sipping her tea. Firestar glared at her. She couldn’t stand how much this woman was able to demand from them. Olivia caught Firestar’s look and though Firestar tried to cover it up, the ire was not lost on Olivia.

“Angelica, was it?” asked Olivia.

“Firestar. Or Agent Jones.”

“Can I call you Angie?”

“No.”

“I’m going to call you Angie,” smiled Olivia, “You’re a mutant, right?”

Firestar scowled.

“Oh, don’t be like that!” frowned Olivia, “I meant it in a positive way. I personally think mutants are the evolutionary future of the planet.”

“Sure.”

“Based on your codename,” said Olivia, “I’m going to go ahead and guess your powers are heat related?”

Firestar didn’t respond.

“I thought so,” said Olivia, “My tea has gotten cold. Warm it for me, would you?”

Firestar stared in disgust as Olivia held the mug out towards her. When Firestar didn’t respond, Olivia grinned and leaned back in her chair.

“Oh dear,” she said, “I’m receiving such poor treatment from my escorting agents. So poor, in fact, that I’m considering going back on the deal.”

Firestar tensed her muscles, but forced herself to relax. She reached over and placed her hand on the mug, slowly generating a small amount of heat until the tea was near boiling again. Then Firestar let go of it.

“That’s much better,” smiled Olivia, “but it looks as though you’ve made it too hot. Could you blow on it to cool it down? Do be careful not to get any spit in it when you do.”

Firestar complied, ignoring Olivia’s snickering when Firestar puckered her lips to blow onto the tea. Olivia’s grin had widened. Firestar was certain that Olivia was making these requests purely out a sadistic vendetta against them, not out of personal desire.

“Thank you,” said Oliva, “That’s a good girl.”

“You know what!?” cried Firestar angrily, standing up.

“Firestar!” shouted Captain America, who was sitting on the other end of the plane, “Why don’t you take a break?”

Firestar angrily looked at Cap. He was right. The only clean way out of this situation was to leave and act as though she had gotten worked up over nothing. It was infuriating, but it was what she had to do.

“Yes, Captain,” she complied, walking through the curtains and to the other side.

“Ooh, Captain America!” greeted Olivia, “Just the man I was hoping to see. This plate has been sitting here for far too long. I’m beginning to detest the smell. Remove it from my presence.”

Captain America walked up calmly, took the plate and walked away. Olivia beamed. She was delighting in bossing the Avengers around. Black Widow entered from where Firestar had exited, ready to take over for her frustrated teammate. Black Widow was only sitting for a few minutes before Olivia decided to push her buttons as well.

“Ugh,” said Olivia, throwing her head back dramatically, “My shoulders are killing me! There’s just so much stress working on a top secret project for S.H.I.E.L.D. I don’t know if my shoulders can handle the tension! I may have to quit! If only someone would massage them for me.”

“You want me to give you a massage?” confirmed Black Widow curtly, “Or else you’re going to go back on the deal? Is that it?”

“More or less, yes.”

“...fine,” she said, “but you’re going to have to sit over there so I-”

There was a loud **bang!** from above them. They stopped and looked up at the ceiling. That was not normal. Captain America and Firestar rushed into the room a moment later.

“What was that?” asked Firestar.

“Nothing good,” said Cap, grabbing his shield, “Get ready, everyone.”

“You don’t think they’re after me, do you!?” cried Olivia, suddenly panicked, “I mean, surely people want all of you dead too! Maybe they’re here for you, right?”

“Not so smug now,” scoffed Firestar.

“You’re my escort!” screamed Olivia, standing, “You’re supposed to keep me safe!”

“And we will,” assured Cap, “Just remain calm and listen to-”

There was a crack followed by the deafening sound of wind from behind Olivia. The window had popped off. The frightened scientist shrieked as she found herself being sucked backwards by the air in the plane rushing out the window. Olivia’s butt reached the window first and stuck right into the opening. Olivia let out a yelp as she felt her butt cram into the small opening, being too large to get sucked all the way out. Olivia let out a long, pained moan. The speed at which the plane was moving was causing unbelievable discomfort for her behind dangling out the window.

“Help meeee!” begged Olivia.

Firestar and Black Widow both rushed over and each grabbed one of Olivia’s arms and pulled. The scientist’s eyes widened with each tug as they slowly dragged her back into the plane. Olivia sighed with relief when her feet could finally touch the floor again, even as the other two had to hold her down to keep her from being sucked out again. That’s when a long strand of red cloth flew in from the window, and deftly tied itself in a knot to the back of Olivia’s belt.

“It’s got me!” cried Olivia frantically, “It’s got me! Help! Help!”

“What the hell is that?” asked Black Widow, trying in vain to unknot the cloth.

Then the cloth yanked Olivia back butt first into the window again. They rushed over to get her back in, but this time the fabric had her by the belt and pulled and pulled until her butt slid through the window and Olivia was yanked out as well.

“Widow!” called Cap.

“I’m on it!” she responded.

Black Widow was trained in some of the most specialized equipment in S.H.I.E.L.D. Among them was low pressure survival gear and magnetic scaling equipment. She rushed to a briefcase full of devices and quickly put on a backpack, a high tech mask that covered her whole face, and four magnets shaped like flat circles that she fixed to her hands and feet.

She rushed to the window and stuck her head out of it. The rushing air was painful, but thankfully her mask prevented it from impairing her too much. She saw the culprit immediately: a figure wearing a red cloak who had latched onto the side of the plane. One thin strand of their cloak blew far behind them in the wind. At the end of it was a screaming Olivia, who the cloth clung onto by the back of her belt, flailing her in the high speed winds.

Black Widow activated both magnets on her hands and stuck them to the plane, swinging her legs out. The momentum of the plane almost dislocated her shoulder, but then she activated both of the magnets on her feet and clung onto the plane with all four limbs. Then she slowly began climbing her way up the side toward the figure.

Black Widow tensed as she felt something grab the back of her utility belt. She looked over her shoulder and sure enough, another red cloth had come down and knotted itself around the belt. She felt a jerk backwards as the cloth tried to yank her off the plane. The magnets held tight, but the pull still forced the belt painfully into her abdomen. The cloth made another tug, and then a third, before finally tugging from a different direction and successfully plucking the spy out of her magnet grips.

The next thing Black Widow knew, she was flying through the air plummeting towards the ground as the plane seemed to disappear from sight in the distance. She saw a trail of red fly off the aircraft, meaning that the kidnapper got away. Black Widow pulled the cord on her pack and deployed the parachute, catching her with a chest harness that impacted her so hard she let out a cough. She cursed herself as she slowly descended to the trees below.

***

“Wah!” cried out Olivia as the figure tossed her aside.

Olivia grunted and got to her feet. Her glasses and shoes had both been lost in the kidnapping and her hair had become even more of a mess than it was before. She looked down at her ankle monitor. It was broken. The Avengers would have a hard time finding her now. She looked back at the red figure, who had carried Olivia all the way to this forest and into an underground lab of some sort. Olivia had recognized the cloak immediately. The Crimson Cowl was her design.

“Wait…” begged Olivia, “Please… ACK!”

The cloth had snapped over and snatched Olivia’s ankle lifting her up and into the air upside down by it. Olivia shivered nervously as the figure dangled her in front of their face before pulling the hood back to reveal the face of Justine Hammer.

“You look nice,” smiled Olivia uncomfortably, “Oof!”

Justine had released her ankle and dropped her face first to the ground.

“We had a deal, Octavius,” said the woman slowly.

“Yes, well, you see, uh…” stuttered Olivia nervously, “I would have gotten you the supercomputer, but we ran into a little complication…”

“What sort of complication?”

“Um…” muttered Olivia, blushing, “Squirrel Girl gave me a wedgie...*”

*In [Supervillain Team Up: Lowering Your Standards](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21721564)

“I paid in full, up front!” roared Justine, her voice now distorted by the cloak’s technology, “and you DIDN’T DELIVER!!!”

“Wait, wait, wait, please!” begged Olivia, on her knees with both hands clasped together, “Don’t hurt me, please! I bruise so easily… Ah!”

Justine had used a strand of cloth to hook Olivia’s belt and lift her up to eye level again.

“I need weapons and you’re going to build them for me,” whispered Justine, “or bruises are going to be the least of your worries!”

Olivia whimpered.

***

Captain America and Firestar continued their brisk hike, walking up and down the hills of the forest as they followed the signal from the tracker in Black Widow’s suit. She had landed not far from there.

“Hey Cap,” said Firestar after some time in silence, “can I ask you a question?”

“Of course.”

“Do you trust Agent Romanoff?”

Cap stopped walking for a moment. Firestar stopped too, looking at his face. He seemed pensive. It took him a few moments before he answered the question.

“I have full faith in her as a teammate,” he finally said.

“...only as a teammate?” asked Firestar.

“Agent Romanoff is a complex person,” said Cap, “I don’t know everything about her life, but I know she spent a considerable amount of time as both an espionage agent and an assassin. That does things to people. I won’t pretend to understand it or how it affects her outlook and actions.” 

“...but you don’t trust her?” clarified Firestar.

Cap didn’t respond to that. He simply started walking again. Firestar followed closely behind him. She decided to change the subject to break the awkward silence.

“Maybe Olivia is with her,” she suggested.

“I don’t think so,” said Cap, “The Crimson Cowl got Olivia. I saw it.”

“Well her ankle monitor isn’t working,” said Firestar, “So how are we even supposed to find her?”

“One step at a time.”

“Hey fellas,” came a disenchanted voice from above, “Mind lending me a hand?”

They both looked up to see Black Widow dangling slowly back and forth in the branches, her parachute all tied up in them. The front of her parachute pack looked damaged two, which was probably why she hadn’t been able to take it off.

“Mind if I…?” offered Firestar, holding up her hand.

“Please,” said Black Widow.

Firestar fired a heat ray and the cords connecting the pack to the actual parachute. The cords ripped almost instantly and Black Widow fell to the ground. She readied herself to land gracefully, but missed the mark and landed face first in a mud puddle instead.

“Whoops,” winced Firestar, “Sorry.”

“Are you alright?” asked Cap, helping Black Widow to her feet.

“Yeah, except for my pride,” she said, “I’m guessing from the lack of shrill nerd screams that you haven’t found Olivia yet?”

“We have not,” said Cap, “and what’s more, her ankle monitor’s tracker isn’t working.”

“Great,” sighed Black Widow, “Do we have any ideas?”

“What about her kidnapper? That Crimson Cowl person?” asked Firestar.

“You know them?” asked Black Widow.

“No, Cap told me,” admitted Firestar.

“They’ve been at large for a while now,” explained Cap, “They seem to be running a large scale operation, but their crimes have been so sparse and so precise that no one can tell what.”

“If they’re after Olivia, that means the cloak they were wearing is probably her design,” concluded Black Widow.

“Do we have ANY idea where they might have landed?” asked Cap.

“Vaguely,” nodded Black Widow, “Follow me.” 

***

“Status report,” ordered Justine.

“Hard to say…” muttered Olivia.

Justine scowled. She used one of the strands of fabric to whip Olivia in the butt, causing her to yelp and grab it in pain before looking back in frustrated embarrassment.

“A few days!” she answered fearfully, “A week at most, I promise!”

“You have 24 hours,” ordered Justine.

“But that’s not possible!” cried out Olivia.

“24 hours,” repeated Justine, “or I slather you in honey and throw you to the bears.”

Olivia let out a low whine as she meekly got back to work. She was doomed. There was no way Olivia could finish the weapons that quickly with this equipment. She had worked with Justine before; she did not make idle threats.

Justine Hammer was the daughter of billionaire entrepreneur and inventor Justin Hammer, the CEO of Hammer Industries. Hammer Industries produced a number of products, but got most of its business from military contracts. While only their deals with the American military were publicly known, they were also involved in countless black markets for weapons of varying caliber, including ones of mass destruction.

Justine had publicly distanced herself from her father, decrying his unethical business practices. In truth, this was a ruse to throw off suspicion that Justine was in fact a mercenary acting on behalf of Hammer Industries. She would regularly attack Hammer’s clients, causing them to buy more advanced weapons from Hammer to counter her, only for her to use that same technology to stay one step ahead of them and perpetuate the cycle.

Though Justin Hammer was a successful inventor in his own right, he had about reached the extent of his ingenuity in his old age and didn’t have any engineers or inventors on staff talented enough to produce what he needed. That’s why they had contacted Olivia, who had agreed to design countless machines for them. This included a cutting edge supercomputer and the Crimson Cowl itself. Unfortunately, her failure to deliver on the supercomputer left their professional relationship tense. 

Olivia was frantically attaching and detaching parts while testing subroutines in the weapon’s internal computer. What Justine was asking for was just short of fully sentient artificial intelligence, but it wasn’t beyond Olivia’s abilities. It was, however, beyond Olivia’s ability to finish in 24 hours.

“Oh no…” realized Olivia.

She had just activated the device to test the routine, but hadn’t cleared the debris from the exhaust pipe yet. She frantically turned the weapon about to find the pipe so she could clear it out before-

**Boom!**

Black ash and debris and burst out of the pipe from the built up pressure, spraying the hot mess all over Olivia’s face. She yelled out in pain, then coughed out a lungful of black smoke. She hadn’t been seriously burned, but her face was now completely covered in smelly black powder.

“What the hell are you doing!?” demanded Justine.

“Nothing!” insisted Olivia, “It was an accident! I didn’t mean-”

Justine decided to use her own hands this time, grabbing Olivia by the collar of her jumpsuit and lifting the short woman up to her eye level. Olivia winced in discomfort. Justine had given her a mechanic’s jumpsuit to wear for the duration of her stay. The unflattering baggy suit was now riding up uncomfortably far into Olivia’s crotch.

“You know what? Forget the bears!” growled Justine angrily, “If you screw up again, I will tear you apart limb from limb myself! Is that clear!?”

Olivia tried and failed to hold back a sob of fear.

“That’s what I thought,” dismissed Justine, dropping Olivia back to the ground, “Now get back to work.”

Olivia did, too scared to say anything else. This was it. She was certain this is how it was going to end for her. This maniac was impossible to please and Olivia had no way to get out from under her thumb now.

***

“So you’re sure it was this area?” asked Cap.

“Relatively,” shrugged Black Widow, “Again, I only have a vague idea.”

“It might be enough,” said Firestar, “One second…”

Firestar focused her heat energy and shaped it up and around her face, gradually shifting her vision to a rough approximation of an infrared thermographic reading. She could see heat signatures when she used her powers this way. Since they were in a forest in the middle of nowhere, there would only be so many humanoid heat signatures.

“There!” shouted Firestar, pointing.

The trio were on top of a hill, looking out over part of the forest. Firestar had pinpointed the only human heat signatures in her sight and knew exactly where they were. The team headed off, hiking down the hill and through the trees before reaching a small clearing where Firestar had pointed.

“Where is it?” asked Cap.

“They’re below us,” said Firestar, “but I don’t know-”

“Here,” said Black Widow, dusting some dirt off of a metal hatch, “It’s some sort of underground complex.”

“I’m guessing it’s locked?” asked Cap.

Black Widow nodded.

“Hold on,” said Firestar, “move back.”

Black Widow did so as Firestar pointed both her hands at the hatch, releasing a concentrated heat ray at one central point. She continued this for several seconds until the metal started to turn red, then white, and finally bits of it became molten and starting dripping down, creating a small hole that opened wider and wider as more of the steel melted. When she was done the hole was big enough for any of them to easily fit through.

“Good work, Firestar.”

They entered through the hole Firestar had made and climbed down the ladder, finding themselves in a narrow hallway that went in a straight line. When they got to the end of it they saw a door. Captain America raised a hand to signal everyone to freeze. He looked to Firestar, pointed to her hand, and then the lock on the door. She understood.

Firestar concentrated a heatray again, but this time only on the lock and handle of the door. Once the white hot molten metal dripped away silently, there was nothing holding the door shut. Then Cap gave the signal to go and charged in through the door.

“Cowl!” cried Cap they rushed in.

They had entered what appeared to be an enormous manufacturing room. There were cranes and cables and conveyor belts everywhere as well as a workbench and large computer toward the center of the room, where Olivia stood. Her face was covered in burnt debris, she was wearing a baggy jumpsuit, and her hair was even more of a burnt and tangled mess than usual. She was under the watch of the Cowl, whose face was now clearly visible.

“Justine Hammer!?” realized Black Widow.

“Help!!” cried Olivia immediately, “She’s going to kill me! Please! You have to-”

“Shut up!” ordered Justine, pulling her hood back on, “We have to go. This base has been compromised.”

Justine rose up into the air. Olivia let out a “Wah!” as a strand of fabric grabbed a strap on the back of her jumpsuit and lifted her into the air, flying away.

“Oh no you don’t!” cried Cap, throwing his shield.

The fast-moving disc flew right through the cloth strand holding Olivia, severing it and causing Olivia to fall several feet to the ground and land face first.

“Ow…” she moaned.

Justine dropped swiftly to the ground and charged at Olivia.

“Widow!” ordered Cap.

“On it!” she replied.

Black Widow drew her grappling hook gun and fired it at Olivia. The dull end of the hook hit the scientist square in the back, causing her to cry out in pain before the device hooked her jumpsuit. Black Widow clicked the switch and activated the automatic reel in.

Olivia screamed in fear as Justine leapt at her. Olivia continued to scream when she was yanked away by the hook in her jumpsuit the second before Justine reached her. Olivia’s cries of fear echoed across the room as she was swiftly dragged all the way across the floor by the grappling hook, bouncing on her butt along the floor the whole way. She landed at the feet of her saviors.

“Please!” she begged, sobbing and hugging Cap’s leg, “Don’t let her hurt me!!”

Justine was almost to them. Cap raised his shield and blocked her approach. Justine delivered a punch that collided with the shield. This moment gave Black Widow the few seconds she needed to run away, dragging a crying Olivia behind her by the jumpsuit.

Firestar released a huge burst of heat directly into Justine, blasting her away and igniting some of the cloak in flames. Justine spun and somehow extinguished all the flames, unharmed.

“How in the world did she do that?” wondered Black Widow, hiding behind a crate.

“It’s a special fabric that repairs itself,” uttered Olivia weakly, lying next to her, “It also has a built in extinguishing system.”

Suddenly the crate was thrown aside. Olivia let out a high pitch scream as Justine loomed over them. Black Widow drew her gun and fired it several times, but failed to pierce the cloak.

“Bulletproof too?” she asked Olivia irritably.

The scientist nodded fearfully.

“Sorry,” said Justine wryly, “but I believe you have something that belongs to me.”

“No, please!” begged Olivia.

The strand of cloth hand wrapped around her ankle a second later, hoisting her up and into the air before hooking the seat of her jumpsuit to one of the cranes hanging from a conveyor belt system on the ceiling, leaving her hanging upside down.

“I’m just going to leave you here,” said Justine, swooping back down into the fight.

“Let me dooooooown!” whined Olivia, now completely sobbing.

“Firestar!” ordered Cap, getting ready for Justine’s attack, “Get the package!”

“I’m not a package!” screamed Olivia, flailing her limbs in distress, “I’m Dr. Olivia Octavius, the greatest scientific genius in the- Hey! What’s happening?”

Justine had thrown Cap into the control panel by the computer, damaging the machine in the process. By chance, that was the machine that controlled the conveyor belt that Olivia was hooked on. Suddenly it hummed to life and Olivia found herself being carried across the room on it.

“Damn it!” cursed Firestar, sprinting after her.

Cap and Black Widow continued their fight with Justine as Firestar pursued Olivia, barely able to keep up with the speed of the conveyor belt as it carried Olivia away.

“What are you doing!?” demanded Olivia, “Get me down from here!”

“Relax, I’m trying!” Firestar shouted to her.

Firestar followed the conveyor belt’s path with her eyes, seeing that it would curve and end up near a tall pile of crates soon. Firestar rushed over to that pile of crates.

“Hey, wait!” cried out Olivia, “Where are you going? Don’t leave me! Please!”

Firestar ignored Olivia increasingly pitiful pleas for help as she began ascending the pile of crates. She made it to the top seconds before Olivia would pass by it. She readied herself as the upside down scientist dangled nearer and nearer.

“Unhook me!” demanded Olivia, kicking her legs about, “Unhook me now!”

“I’m trying!” insisted Firstar as the hook finally came within arm’s reach, “Quit kicking! You’re going to- AH!”

Olivia had kicked Firestar in the side of the head before she could unhook her. The dazed Friestar made another grab at Olivia, but she had moved too far away from the crates now. She instead found herself falling just past Olivia and grasping at anything she could. The first thing she grabbed was Olivia’s hair.

Olivia, still upside down, shrieked as Firestar’s entire weight pulled down on her hair. Firestar dangled there, clinging to Olivia’s hair like a swinging rope. Tears welled up in Olivia’s eyes as the hair was yanked and yanked. The scientist’s shrieking persisted for another few seconds before the tufts of hair in Firestar’s clutches tore away, causing the mutant to fall to the ground. Looking up, Firestar saw the incident had left Olivia with a bald patch on top of her head.

“Heeeeeeelp meeeeeeeee!” cried Olivia as she was carried away.

It was then that Olivia and Firestar saw where the conveyor belt was taking them. The hooks, intended for strong metals, were taking Olivia up to a low level incinerator. Olivia squeaked in fear. A low level of incineration is still, by human standards, bad.

“Do something!!” she pled, “I don’t wanna get incineraaaaaaaated!!!!”

 _Alright,_ thought Firestar, _I only get one shot at this…_

She thrust both of her hands up at the hook, aiming at the conveyor belt just over Olivia. With some luck, she could melt it before it reached the incinerator. She fired the heatray, but realized her aim was off. The recipient ended up being Olivia’s rear end instead.

“AHAHAHAOOOOWWWWWCCHHHH!!!”

Bits of burning fabric fell away as the butt of the pants was hit with a powerful burst of heat, burning away much of the fabric instantly. When the smoke cleared, there was a clear window to Olivia’s pink underpants covered in red hearts. The tattered suit was now barely clinging to the hook.

“Nooooooooooooo!” wailed Olivia, nearing closer and closer to the incinerator.

Firestar readied another heatray, but she didn’t know if she could do it in time. Suddenly the conveyor belt stopped. Olivia, sobbing, dangled mere inches from the incinerator. Her ass of pink hearts, the bald patch on her head, and the face covered in soot, tears, and snot made her look ridiculous.

“Whew!” sighed Firestar, “That was lucky.”

Back near the front of the room, Captain America and Black Widow had just knocked Justine unconscious and used the control panel to stop the conveyor belt. Black Widow collapsed in exhaustion onto the control panel, sighing with relief. In doing so, she accidentally flipped the switch to the conveyor belt again.

“YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEOOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWOOOOWWWWOOWWW!!!”

Olivia leapt from the incinerator to back into the room, ass aflame. The incinerator had burnt her suit enough to release Olivia before she got too close, but her butt did still end up briefly in the incinerator. The result was a screaming Olivia running across the room with fire and smoke trailing from her behind the whole way.

Cap grabbed a fire extinguisher off the wall fire. When Olivia finally got close enough, Cap sprayed her down with it. Olivia screeched and flailed, collapsing onto the ground as she was smothered in the whiteness. She lay trembling on the ground, stained white from the extinguisher, her bare and burnt ass sticking up in the air.

“I’ll do whatever Hill wants...” moaned Olivia in misery, “Please… Just get me out of here…”

***

“Thank you,” nodded Hill, “I look forward to reading your report.”

“Director Hill,” said Steve, “if I may, what service will Dr. Octavius be providing S.H.I.E.L.D.?”

Hill looked back up blankly. They were in Hill’s office, where Steve had just given his summation on the mission. Now it seemed as though he wouldn’t leave without questioning Hill’s authority more.

“I believe I already told you,” said Hill, “it’s classified.”

“It makes me nervous,” said Steve, “I don’t want to believe S.H.I.E.L.D. is developing anything dangerous.”

“We develop dangerous things, Captain Rogers,” said Hill in exasperation, “It’s how we protect people from the other dangerous things.”

“You’re walking a fine line, Hill.”

Hill scowled. She didn’t like that he had dropped her title.

“Your concern has been noted,” said Hill, “Now please leave. I have a lot to take care of.”

Steve left without saying another word. Hill sighed to herself. Steve was becoming more of a problem every day. If he kept this up, Hill would have to find a way to quietly get him out of the way. Easier said than done when it came to Captain America.

Hill put her paperwork away and got up, walking out of her office. She made her way down to the lower floors of the Triskelion, where security was based. She entered their processing area, where several small rooms had been converted to cells.

Olivia sat pouting with her arms crossed in one of them. Once Hill got wind how terrified Olivia was of being kidnapped again, she used that leverage to deny Olivia any of her usual luxuries. She was now restricted to only a small cell when not working in the lab. Olivia missed the luxuries, but at least here she was treated with _some_ dignity.

“I see you’ve made yourself at home,” said Hill dryly as she approached the cell.

Olivia looked up at her angrily.

“Oh yes, I’m sure you miss your old room,” nodded Hill, “but something tells me you’d miss being protected from your enemies more.”

“What do you want?” asked Olivia with disdain.

“Your computer engineering and neurobiological expertise,” answered Hill.

“...at the same time?”

Hill smiled.

**Author's Note:**

> 45% jokes  
> 30% humiliation  
> 25% plot


End file.
